Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Brian Thorsett & Jarring Sounds

Yesterday I attended the inaptly named Noontime Concerts at Old St. Mary's & heard mezzo Danielle Reutter-Harrah, tenor Brian Thorsett, violinist Natalie Carducci & lutenist Adam Cockerham in a pithy 45-minute program of 17th century music. It opened with Ms. Reutter-Harrah presenting 3 coy love songs in English by Henry Lawes. Her singing is controlled & steady, & she makes every note sound distinct. Tenor Brian Thorsett then sang 3 lovely Monteverdi songs. His voice is high, floating & focused, & his singing expressive & urgent. I especially enjoyed the plaintive "Et e pur dunque vero," in which the singer alternates with a violin. Mr. Thorsett & Natalie Carducci, playing a baroque violin, made it seem like a dialogue between the 2 of them. Ms. Carducci then peformed a melancholy Prelude by Kapsberger & a virtuosic sonata by Corelli. Her playing had a nice freedom & was a bit jaunty. The program ended with Ms. Reutter-Harrah giving a firm performance of "Bess of Bedlam," a disconcerting mad scene by Purcell. Mr. Cockerham accompanied all the pieces, sounding calm & secure. He played a very tall theorbo with 2 sets of strings. The Noontime Concerts audience listened quietly & politely. Ms. Carducci had to compete with a jackhammer on the street during the Corelli sonata.